Analysis of Macbeth's Soliloquy (Act 1 Scene 7)

Analysis of Macbeth's Soliloquy (Act 1 Scene 7) By Edward Chan Exuding the underlying reflections of Macbeth's psyche, the soliloquy represents the outpouring of confusion and conscience, adding to our insight into Macbeth's obscure persona. At the opening of the play, we have a strong impression of Macbeth as a 'worthy gentleman', with Duncan referring to him as 'noble Macbeth'. Though, this becomes untenable with ironic juxtaposition when we witness Macbeth's intent to murder Duncan for the 'golden round'. Macbeth's soliloquy better elucidates this complex character, providing a more comprehensive basis for our judgement. Incongruous to the courage and physical strength Macbeth displayed on the battlefield 'unseam[ing Macduff] from the nave to th'chaps', he is weak and vacillating in his soliloquy. Macbeth emanates an atmosphere of confusion and anxiety suggested by the rapid overlapping movement of imagery that reflects the swift intuitive movement in his mind. The concept of spurring a horse is overtaken by that of vaulting, and 'heaven's cherubin' riding the winds, 'the sightless couriers of the air' merges into the winds themselves and 'blow[s] the horrid deed in every eye'. It follows that Macbeth is irresolute about whether he should 'commit the deed'. The structure of Macbeth's arguments is based on assumptions - 'If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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What's the significance of the moments when Iago addresses the audience?

What's the significance of the moments when Iago addresses the audience? Trying to psychoanalyse the nature of Iago is like trying to decipher the enigma. Iago is a character with so many different facets to his name that literary critics have been divided for years as to whether Iago is indeed a highly complex character or if he is one who is in fact very simple. We as an audience try and understand his actions. Perhaps Iago is of such a mentality that his audience simply cannot grasp his nature and it is only through the imagination of Shakespeare that we gain an insight into this different mentality. One reputable critic - Coleridge was of the opinion that Iago had a "motiveless malignity" a delight in evil for evils sake. This would remove the much-popularised view that Iago had several motives - envy, humiliation, failure and inferiority. Either intentionally or unintentionally Iago creates an air of mystery about himself, which is subtly revealed in his soliloquies with the audience. Critics have always felt that Othello and Iago are in some ways equal and opposite or rather, complimentary. However the Elizabethan audience would have considered them to be strangely similar, because they share common values. Both Iago and Othello suffer from the same disease - jealousy. So in this sense they can be seen as parallels. I think that this is what Shakespeare intended,

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Consider the significance of the Hamlet's ghost to the play in relation to the characters and the audience, both contemporary and Elizabethan.

Susana Corona Cruz Consider the significance of the Hamlet's ghost to the play in relation to the characters and the audience, both contemporary and Elizabethan. Hamlet was written some time between 1599 and 1609. During those times revenge tragedies were very popular and ghosts were not an unusual feature. Similarly to the Senecan ghost used in Elizabethan times, Shakespeare's ghost acts as a prologue and sets up the action of the play, it introduces the plot line which irremediably leads to the later tragic consequences. However Hamlet's ghost was in many ways a "revolutionary innovation" and broke previous conventions of ghosts. Unlike its predecessor, the Senecan ghost, a "kind of Jack-in-the-box" (J.W.D) which was no more than a spook puppet used to scare the audience, undoubtedly adding "to the intense edification of the groundlings"; Hamlet's ghost had a much more human and realistic appearance. It was said to have been the figure of the old king Hamlet, still dressed in his old armour "Together with that fair and warlike form" and surrounded by an edgy, cold and frightening environment in which typically ghosts appear "'Tis bitter cold". The ghost disappeared at the sound of the cock crow, when the morning dawned; "(...) Fare thee well at once. The glow-worm shows the matin to be near" This is another typical convention, as people perceived that evil creatures and

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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The Fate of Time.

The Fate of Time By Courtney Wallace "This day's black fate on more days doth depend:/ This but begins the woe others must end." (Act 3, Scene 1) What is love? Is it not a feeling, a dream, a look? How long must it take one to know he/she is in love? In addition, if it is longer then an hour is it really love? One could say love is in the eyes, the window to the soul; another could say the eyes could not see love for they only tell so much. However, what about fate, if fate exists what does it matter if the love is in the eyes or truly in the heart? In addition, at what point is life swept out of the beholder's hands and into those of fate? If Shakespeare would have answered, I believe he would have said, when those hearts of the beholders do feel love there life is taken by love. Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, is a love story struck down by fate and doomed to tragedy. When considering the destruction of Romeo and Juliet the most significant facts are in terms of caution, patience and wisdom. Romeo and Juliet, said to be one of the most famous love stories of all times, is a play anchored on time, patience and fate. Some actions are believed to occur by chance or by destiny. The timing of each action influences the outcome of the play. While some events are of less significance, some are crucial to the development of this tragedy. Romeo and Juliet were very

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Which scene do you regard as the most rewarding to compare in Akira Kurosawas Throne of Blood and Roman Polanskis Macbeth, and why do you think so? In your answer, you should take care to first analyze the scene in the play text before examining how

Question: Which scene do you regard as the most rewarding to compare in Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood and Roman Polanski's Macbeth, and why do you think so? In your answer, you should take care to first analyze the scene in the play text before examining how this scene is portrayed in the film. Answer: This essay provides a detailed and critical analysis of act 1 scene 7 from Macbeth and then proceeds to examine Aikira Kurosawa and Roman Polanski interpretation of the scene through their respective filmic adaptations. This scene from Shakespeare's play depicts how "Macbeth muses on Duncan's many good qualities, reflects that Duncan has been kind to him, and thinks that perhaps he ought not to kill his king. Lady Macbeth then enters and blows his hesitant thoughts away. She spurs Macbeth to treason by disregarding his rational, moral arguments and challenging his manhood. Under her persuasion, all of Macbeth's objections seem to evaporate." (SparkNotes Editors). This scene had several functions; firstly, it shows that Macbeth possesses moral order since in the first part of the scene, he actually acknowledges that Duncan has been good to him and he should dismiss the plan of killing Duncan; secondly, it touches upon the idea of women as a source of evil since it was lady Macbeth who persuades Macbeth to kill Duncan even though he has made up his mind not to kill Duncan;

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Re-Imagining Cleopatra

Re-Imagining Cleopatra [Type the document subtitle] Nastasia Garcia Cleopatra 5/14/08 Through writers such as Boccaccio, Dryden, al-Mas'udi we see their version of Cleopatra, they each have different way of portraying her, giving their view of the situation during that time. Each of these writes provide a distinct version of Cleopatra, to this day people do not have a clear view on who she really is. Cleopatra remains a mystery; can anyone confirm for certain that the persona these writers portray her as is in fact who she truly is? It's hard to say since each of them has a dissimilar view on her. Some of which are not in favor of the queen, some being partial, and others who hold her in high esteem. In addition to the writers that have a diverse version of her, we have what is seen through movies and TV mini-series facilitates another account on who Cleopatra may have been. The film Cleopatra staring Elizabeth Taylor gives us a lavished portrayal of the queen, while episodes of HBO's Rome give us a more "down and dirty" depiction of her. Both of these representations are very much in their own right depending on how you may want to envision this ruler. Popular culture can only give us their version of what they have imagined went on during that epoch; it doesn't necessarily mean that they are all correct in each of their interpretations. However it does allow for

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Contrasting Oedipus and Othello: Reality and Falsity

Hayley MacPhee H. MacPhee 1 Professor Pal ENG 1121 10 April 2002 Contrasting Oedipus and Othello: Reality and Falsity In the plays "Oedipus the King" by Sophocles and Shakespeare's "Othello," there are many instances where both of the protagonists are blinded and misled. Oedipus and Othello have difficulty distinguishing between reality and falsity. Othello (incidentally more stubborn than Oedipus) does not "see the light" until he has murdered, conspired the death of a friend and committed suicide. Oedipus invents his own punishment without harm to others when he realizes exactly who he is and what he has done. Oedipus has "killed his father; sewed the womb of her who bore him" (exodus. 263). He has murdered his father, not aware that it was indeed his own father because he was adopted as an infant. When he returns to Thebes, he marries a woman "old enough to be his mother" and indeed, she is his mother. He has four children by her, two boys and two girls. H. MacPhee 2 Oedipus, the king of Thebes is an arrogant ruler who acts impetuously. He has saved Thebes from the curse of a sphinx by solving a riddle and when the city suffers from a rampant bout of the plague, Oedipus consults with an oracle immediately to see what can be done to help the city of Thebes. His successes and triumphs have rendered

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Many claim that Shakespeare's last attempt at the theatre was unsuccessful; resulting in a play that is, in essence, about nothing. The Tempest.

Many claim that Shakespeare's last attempt at the theatre was unsuccessful; resulting in a play that is, in essence, about nothing. The Tempest may appear this way at first, in the same way that the storm in the play appears to be Mother Nature acting up; but just as the tempest is more than a windstorm, The Tempest has more to it than meets the eye. It is instead a symbolic story of life in the theatre, a final farewell as Shakespeare leaves his career as a playwright. The Tempest is brimming with suggestion towards the theatre and the art of acting. The audience must be aware of the implication behind the words in order to understand these suggestions. The Tempest begins with an actual tempest, a storm created by Prospero to draw his adversaries near. It is this storm that starts the chain of action in the play, which eventually leads to the resolution of justice. The tempest comes to symbolise the twists and turns within a play, and the illusions that are often discovered by the viewer. This storm goes to demonstrate that all in theatre is not as it seems, and that one event can drastically change the suspected outcome. The tempest, as title of, and introduction to the play, also symbolises the power of attraction. Without the tempest, Prospero could not have attracted his adversaries to the island, as without the story of The Tempest, Shakespeare could not have attracted

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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What are the most effective aspects of Aristophanes' comic technique in :

What are the most effective aspects of Aristophanes' comic technique in : Aristophanes' play "Qesmoforiazogsai" ("The Poet and the Women") is an excellent comedy. Standing the test of time and the often diminishing process of translation into English it remains amusing today just as it doubtlessly was to its original Athenian audience. It is a well-controlled comedy with a fluent plot, striking dialogue and intelligent characterisation. But above all it passes the fundamental test of its genre in that it is funny. Aristophanes employs a rich and diverse array of comic techniques and devices to prevent the play from ever going stale; some are satirical; some are obscene; some are visual, for it is important to remember that "The Poet and the Women" is a play and hence meant for performance to a live audience. "The Poet and the Women", to use a modern term, is essentially a situation comedy. Much of the humour comes from the incredible and bizarre situations into which the protagonists are delivered. Creating an amusing situation, out of which comes the other humour, provides the backbone for the comedy. It is essential that the most amusing events occur to the most humorous character and the Old Man's (1) response and reaction to the predicament in which he finds himself is the mainstay of the comedy. The comedy of Aristophanes is on several levels. Of the higher, more

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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A Comparison Of ‘Telephone Conversation’ And ‘Not My Best Side’

Anthony Grubert A Comparison Of 'Telephone Conversation' And 'Not My Best Side' For this essay I am to be comparing the two poems 'telephone conversation' and 'Not my best side'. First I shall begin by writing about the content of each poem separately, the first being 'Wole Soyinka's' 'Telephone conversation'. Telephone conversation is about two people from very different background orientations .One of the pair is a Black person whereas the other is a white landlady. The black person is a character attempting to find residence in a home that would accept him despite his inherent colour. The white landlady is a seemingly shameless woman who in regard of her attitude feels the need to speak to the man under false pretence of aristocracy. She quit obviously is no the aristocrat that she portrays with her accent. The black person is a well-educated gallant who makes his opinion and the facts of the issues concerning racism, which this poem makes reference to as soon as the conversation begins. 'Madam I hate a wasted journey I am African' this reveals that he has face great deal of rejection whilst in pursuit of a home which has been denied due to his colour. The man wishes for sanctuary in a place of residence away from the horrors that society's persecution have inflicted on him and those like him. He wants it all at a reasonable as well price as this extract will

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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